Sports

2K has refreshed their hockey game for the upcoming season, and it's looking solid. NHL 2K for mobile offers a My Career mode, where you focus on one player and shape their performance over multiple seasons.

2K's official NBA game launched today on iOS. NBA 2K15 offers substantially improved graphics while playing on the basketball court, and a new MyCareer mode that has players work through a storyline by doing stuff like answering questions at press conferences and training their custom-made character. The soundtrack is curated by Pharrell Williams, which should keep gameplay moving nicely.

Alright hockey fans, the NHL seasons start tomorrow as you well know. You want to make sure you're on top of what's happening, even if you can't be rinkside or plopped on your couch in front of the TV. Luckily there are a ton of great hockey apps for iPhone and iPad that can make sure you're in tune to what's up before, during, and after the latest games.

Let's drop the puck and get started with our top five NHL apps for iOS.

Adidas is releasing the Bluetooth Smart-connected Smart Ball to help train soccer players improve their kick. The $299 ball comes with a number of integrated sensors and connects with an app on your iPhone to help improve your kicking abilities for shots like penalties, free-kicks, shooting, corners, long passes or goal kicks.

Nintendo classic R.B.I. Baseball has been re-imagined for mobile and is now available on iOS. A fast-paced arcade feel, straightforward pricing with no in-app purchases, and plenty of current players to pick from make this one a solid contender for top of the sports games category.

The "Your Verse" section of Apple's web site - part of its ad campaign for the iPad Air - has been updated with a new section about how the iPad is being used to detect concussion injuries in athletes and help their trainers assess when they're ready to play again.

With spring just around the corner, and NCAA March Madness starting this week, you might be eager to get outside and play some basketball, soccer, or football. The guys at Sportan are trying to help facilitate that with a location-based social network for players. With it, you can find those nearby looking to play your favorite sport, chat with fellow players to figure out logistics, and even mark your progress with a built-in skill rating, leveling, and achievement system.

94Fifty was at CES 2014 demonstrating their recently-launched Bluetooth-enabled basketball, and it’s pretty impressive even if you’re not into sports. This baby charges wirelessly, communicates detailed information to your mobile device, such as spin and shot angle, and connects to the wider world through social challenges. Serious basketball players can run through a wide variety of drills, which include handling, shooting, and everything in between.

Not only is the sensor accuracy on the basketball itself is really solid, but the app is highly polished, providing real-time feedback as you’re training. There’s even audio feedback that sounds like a real coach that barks at you to make corrections mid-drill.

Spree was showing off their fitness headband at CES 2014, which offers the full range of mobile monitoring that you’d come to usually expect from wristbands. Within the headband is a removeable module which you charge over USB and connects to your smartphone over Bluetooth Smart. Once paired, it picks up motion and heat data to make sure you’re meeting your fitness goals while not working yourself too hard.

The headband is designed so that the module is insulated and taking a proper reading of your temperature, rather than the outside environment. Through the app, you can set a wide range of fitness regimens, including running, working out at the gym, and cycling.

At CES 2014, we checked out Heapsylon, who are working on a lineup of Bluetooth-enabled clothes that are perfect for runners. First up are the socks, which have pressure sensors throughout to determine the efficiency of your strides, as well as an ankle unit to help monitor speed, heart rate, and more. On top of that, Sensoria has a bra and t-shirt with embedded sensors. Though you’ll need to buy a proper monitor to plug into the shirt in order to monitor the data, it’s still all fed back to the Sensoria app on your iOS device.